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High school students suspended for possession of energy mints

A group of high school students in Pekin, Ill., were suspended last week after school officials suspected the mints they were eating were actually illegal drugs.

Jason McMichael, the father of one of the students, told the Journal Star that his 17-year-old son Eric was suspended for two days from Pekin Community High School and not allowed to attend the school's homecoming festivities after staffers found four students eating energy mint tablets that are marketed like caffeine energy drinks.

McMichael said he received a phone call from the dean's office informing him of his son's suspension and that the teen was being monitored by the school nurse for an elevated heart rate-though McMichael doesn't believe it was due to the energy mints.

"He's never been in trouble," McMichael said. "He was probably just nervous."

Eric McMichael said he and three others were eating Revive tablets-touted as "nature's energy mints"-in the school cafeteria when they were disciplined.

"People bring energy drinks to school every day," the teen told Central Illinois' WMBD-TV. "I see this every day and we get in trouble for energy mints?"

According to EnergyFiend.com, each mint contains 101 milligrams of caffeine along with guarana, green tea, ginseng, acai, mangosteen and goji. The Revive brand is endorsed by several MMA fighters and fitness pageant contestants.

McMichael's father said school officials later admitted they did not know if the chewable, unmarked mints were, in fact, illegal drugs but upheld the suspensions anyway, saying the teens displayed "gross misconduct for taking an unknown product."

"Now they know nothing illegal happened," McMichael said on Friday, "but they're still pursuing the suspension."

Superintendent Paula Davis told the paper that while she was not able to discuss the incident, school officials would have been within their rights to discipline the students if they were seen "ingesting things that look like unmarked pills."

But like the student said...he sees kids drinking energy drinks at school all the time. If they're going to suspend students for taking energy mints, then they need to discipline students for drinking energy drinks as well. I'm glad this wasn't my highschool. I would have been screwed. I usually went through 4 monsters before 3rd period.

Quoting atlmom2:

Caffeine is a drug. What if they took 10 of them?

Quoting gabby416:

They wouldn't be "high", they are 17 years old, I think that is at their own discretion, who the hell is the school to decide, this is ridiculous. I mean, I know drugs are out of control these days, but they should have undone the suspension as soon as they realized it was simply a mint. This is just so ridiculous it's not even funny. I would be infuriated.

Quoting atlmom2:

School doesn't want a school high on caffeine.

by Anonymous 1
on Apr. 14, 2013 at 8:33 AM

Energy drinks are horrible for you also.

Quoting Anonymous:

But like the student said...he sees kids drinking energy drinks at school all the time. If they're going to suspend students for taking energy mints, then they need to discipline students for drinking energy drinks as well. I'm glad this wasn't my highschool. I would have been screwed. I usually went through 4 monsters before 3rd period.

Quoting atlmom2:

Caffeine is a drug. What if they took 10 of them?

Quoting gabby416:

They wouldn't be "high", they are 17 years old, I think that is at their own discretion, who the hell is the school to decide, this is ridiculous. I mean, I know drugs are out of control these days, but they should have undone the suspension as soon as they realized it was simply a mint. This is just so ridiculous it's not even funny. I would be infuriated.

Quoting atlmom2:

School doesn't want a school high on caffeine.

by Anonymous 3
on Apr. 14, 2013 at 3:55 PM

Doesn't matter. They are not illegal nor is there an age restraint on them. We were also allowed to drink them at our school.

Quoting Anonymous:

Energy drinks are horrible for you also.

Quoting Anonymous:

But like the student said...he sees kids drinking energy drinks at school all the time. If they're going to suspend students for taking energy mints, then they need to discipline students for drinking energy drinks as well. I'm glad this wasn't my highschool. I would have been screwed. I usually went through 4 monsters before 3rd period.

Quoting atlmom2:

Caffeine is a drug. What if they took 10 of them?

Quoting gabby416:

They wouldn't be "high", they are 17 years old, I think that is at their own discretion, who the hell is the school to decide, this is ridiculous. I mean, I know drugs are out of control these days, but they should have undone the suspension as soon as they realized it was simply a mint. This is just so ridiculous it's not even funny. I would be infuriated.

When I was in high school (I graduated in 94), kids were getting suspended for bringing Vivarin to school. Same stuff without the ginseng and guarana. Unfortunately, all of the kids who were bringing them to school were, in fact, abusing them.

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